


Strength of all our pasts, will make an open door

by Jemsquash



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Batman and Robin (Comics)
Genre: Cassandra Cain is Batgirl, Gen, Give Cassandra her time as Batman's partner, Jason Todd is Robin, Tim Drake is too young to be out this late
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-29
Updated: 2018-12-29
Packaged: 2019-09-29 22:50:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,354
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17212337
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jemsquash/pseuds/Jemsquash
Summary: A reorganizing of the Batman Timeline, where Batman: No Man's Land et al happens five years earlier than canon. Which means Jason Todd and Cassandra get to be kid sidekicks together, while Bruce deals with the utter devastation of his home city.





	Strength of all our pasts, will make an open door

Cass had been wearing the Batgirl uniform for almost two months and knew every secret pocket and hidden tool in it. She could move in it as easily as she had the ragged clothing of a drifter. That didn’t stop Bruce from checking everything from the cowl's ears to the strong belt to sturdy heeled boots. He inspected every inch of her armour, like a fussy kevlar covered hen with a single chick.

Jason, watching from between the railings of the upper deck, smiled and shrugged his shoulders at her, yellow cloak rippling with the movement. Fondness and amusement were in every inch of his twelve-year-old body, just as pride and concern was in Bruce’s while he knelt to inspect her remodeled knee guards.

Bruce tapped the kneepads and looked up at her reaction. “Better?” he asked. “You can feel through them now?”

Cass shrugged, threw herself down on the stone floor and considered the pressure without pain, then jumped up and gave a thumbs up.

“”Alright,” Bruce nodded and his body language finally changed from concerned to authoritative. “You’ll be with Robin for the first hours of patrol and then, if it’s still quiet and you feel up to it, he’ll return to me and you’ll cover the lower Southside.”

Cass still didn’t understand every word people spoke around her, despite the team efforts of Barbra, Alfred and Jason, but she already knew what Bruce was saying. She was finally going out alone on patrol.

She grinned behind her cowl and punched her fist up at Jason, who stood and flipped over the balcony railing to jump down neatly next to her.  “She’ll do great B - Cass could take care of herself long before she got to Gotham.” Jason was much more expressive in his body language while dressed as Robin, partly acting and partly sheer excitement at his role. Cass had thought about asking for a brighter, more friendly costume too, but she had watched how people acted around Robin, how children came up and talked. It was better for her skills to go with a fear-inspiring costume, than a child-friendly one.

Cass rolled her shoulders, felt her weighted cape shift with her and felt just as excited as Jason. Finally, Bruce was letting her go out on her first solo patrol.

 

*

 

City travel with Batman went smoothly, following him silently like three shadows on the rooftops of a city devoid of most lighting since the isolating of Gotham. Even the brightly clad Robin was hard to spot, hiding behind Bruce or Cass when an infrequent public member ventured out into the night.

They stopped a mugging, broke up a violent argument over community gardening duties and rescued a couple from a tent they had accidently set alight. Normal duties, light work.

“The gangs should be lying low after the last territory shuffling.” Batman said after giving the homeless couple directions to a shelter for the night. “They will be consolidating their power before pushing for more. The smart ones will at least.” Batman looked sternly at his two sidekicks. “Never assume criminals will do the smart thing. A foolish action can be just as dangerous as a carefully considered one.”

Batgirl nodded because Robin did, trusting whatever Batman said would be repeated again later, as most of his instructions were. Batman stood and looked at them both for a long moment, then he was off across the rooftops for a meeting with Oracle’s father.

Patrol with Robin required a different set of sneaking skills. He was better off the rooftops, down at street level, where he knew all the side allys and hideaways, ducking into one basement and emerging several buildings over. Batgirl, who still had to climb up high to stare down and try to remember her way home, found that amazing. The city had changed so much since Gotham’s isolation, so many things had fallen down and been put up, but Robin still found every lost citizen and got them to shelter, while Bagirl kept back and tried not to frighten anyone.

Barbra said she needed to practise her talking more, that people wouldn’t mind her struggle with words, but Cass resented the effort it took. She’d leave such things to Jason and she’d handle all the heavy hitting he couldn’t manage just yet. They were the perfect guardians of Gotham.

“You ready to head out on your own?” Robin asked later,  using hand gestures liberally. “Your com working alright?”

Batgirl tapped the mouthpiece in her cowl and it beeped reassuringly. Oracle would be focusing on other matters as the night progressed, but she’d have a line open all the time, in case Batgirl needed her.

“You’re so lucky,” Robin said wistfully as Batgirl readyed herself to jump back up to the roof tops. “B won’t let me go two blocks on my own these days.”

“You: little Brother,” Cass said carefully, feeling out the words. “I. Go first.” She waited for his response anxiously. She knew Jason thought them family, his actions screaming out his feelings. But people often didn’t like it when she called out their emotions and thoughts and denied them violently. Jason might not want her to say out loud that she loved him back.

“Yeah,” Jason smiled slightly, though affection poured from his short frame. “Better set a good example then, being older and all.”

They exchanged fistbumps, as foundly as if they hugged, then turned to run to their separate ways. Robin back to Batman’s side a block over and Batgirl to begin her silently patrol of the south side gang territories.

 

*

 

Her main goal was to remain unseen and observe, making note of anything she thought Batman should know of Two-face and the Blueboys movements. She wasn’t to draw attention to herself unless necessary.

“Let it go! That’s mine!”

The sound of a child yelling made it necessary for Cass to run back and jump down to the ally the sound of fighting echoed from. Batman had made it clear: innocents needed to be protected above all else, no matter the consequences. Cassandra loved that about Bruce, that she’d never have to sit back and watch others suffer for her education. Batman would never make her kill.

Cass landed in the ally as loudly as she could, cape billowing out dramatically. She had learnt that most criminals fled when she was mistaken for Batman, rather than some ‘chick in bondage gear’. Barbra still needed to explain to Cass what that meant.

“It’s the Bat!” A quick lunge and tug and Cass had the stolen object in her hand while the scrawny muggers fled. Cass was left alone in the ally, save for the camera in her hands and a child on the ground.

She stared at the boy, not sure what to do now. It wasn’t safe here for a child but how to get him to go with him quietly? Jason did the talking to children mostly, and Batman was a near mythological figure every Gotham child knew to be their protector. Cass was a stranger in black armour and her shaky grasp on speech abandoned her as the boy hesitantly stood up.

“My camera!” The boy said and stepped towards her. “You save it!”

Cass had thought she was saving him, but was happy he wasn’t still yelling. She knelt down belatedly, making herself appear less threatening and held out the camera. Maybe she could lead him somewhere safe.

The boy stepped closer, put out his hand and ignored the camera, pointing to the symbol on her chest, awe in his posture and blue eyes.

Cass looked down at the yellow bat symbol embossed on her armoured breastplate, the sleeker version of the one Batman wore.

“You’re a Bat!” the boy breathed, “You’re Batgirl! You can help me save Ivy!” he ignored the camera held out to him and took her other hand. He turned and started to pull her along...

Cass didn’t follow his words exactly, too caught up in the inspiration her mere presence had inspired. She bemusedly let herself be led along and wondered who was Ivy.

 

**Author's Note:**

> I'm working on little drabbles for now, while I try to plot this out. Feel free to send me questions or your own ideas and headcanon.
> 
> I have a lot more on my tumblr: https://jemsquash.tumblr.com/search/no+man%27s+land


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